Expression mechanism for automatic musical instruments



C. F. STODDARD. EXPRESSION MECHANISM FOR AUTOMATIC MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS. APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 24, 1914 RENEWED OCT. 25. 1920.

1,409,486. Patented'Mar- 14, 1922.

avwawltm 6%(0'555 flyivaldard wi/tweoow MW g w 1%, mm 42. W Y mm? UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES F. STODDARD, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.. ASSIGNOR TO'AMERICAN PIANO COMPANY, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

EXPRESSION MECHANISM FOR AUTOMATIC MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented 11 14, 1922 Application filed September 24, 1914, Serial No. 863,359. Renewed October 25, 1920. Serial No. 419,492.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, CHARLES F. STODDARD, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of New York, in the county of New York automatic musical instruments, such, for in-.

stance, as player-pianos and the like.

Among other objects, the invention is intended to provide apparatus capable of producing prompt changes in playing intensity while maintaining intensities so far a s-may be desired, regardless of the number of tones sounded.

The character of the invention may be. readily understood by reference to the ac companying drawing,;which shows diagrams matically one illustrative embodiment.

In the drawings, a bellows 1 exemplifies a source of power for operating the striker pneumatics which may be operated selectively, as well understood by those skilled in the art, from a tracker board through ducts 3. A passage 4 connects the action chests 5 of the player actions with a port 6 into a regulating bellows 7 having a regulator valve 8 controlling a port 9 communicating with the source of power 1. As well understood in the art, the valve 8 regulates the flow of air from the action chest 5 to the source 1.

The regulator valve 8 is connected by a link 10 with the movable board of the regulator bellows 7. p The regulator is provided with a spring 11 pivoted at its upper end to a stationary bracket 12. The lower end of the spring 11 carries a roller 13 to engage a bracket 14 mounted upon the movable board of the regula'tor 7. The spring 11 is swung upon its pivot 12 to move the roller 13 along the'track 14 to vary the leverage of the spring on the regulator bellows; and the track 14 is preferably curved so that its parts shall be sub stantially equidistant from the pivot 12 of the spring. As the spring 11 is moved contraclockwisefrom the position shown in the drawing, the roller 13,-constituting the point of application to the bellows 7 of the pull of the spring,moves nearer the hinge of the bellows which constitutes the fulcrum of the lever upon which the spring acts. Accordingly, the leverage favorable to the pull of the spring diminishes, thereby diminishing the efiective pull upon the movable board of the regulating bellows. The lower part of the spring ll'passes through aneye-piece 16 fastened to the movable board of an expres sionbello ws 18 so that as said bellows 18 is collapsed and expanded, theeye-piece 16 will cause the spring 11 to accompany the move ment of said movable board. The pneumatic 18 is arranged to be exhausted through a duct 20 preferably having an adjustable bleed by which the capacity of the duct may be diminished so as to cause the pneumatic 18 to collapse slowly and thereby slowly and gradually move "the springll toward the right in the drawing to reduce with a correspondin 1y slower speed the eiiect-ive leverage of t e spring 11 upon the regulator bellows 7. The effect of this, as will be readily understood by those skilled in the art, is to modify the regulation so as to produce a gradual slow diminuendo. When atmosphere is admitted through the duct 20, the bellows 18 having been wholly or partially collapsed, is then expanded by a spring 22 connected to the eye-piece 16. This returns the spring 11 to or toward the position shown in the drawing and thereby produces aslow crescendo.

The bellows 18 may also be exhausted through a duct 25 of greater capacity than the duct 20 to collapse the bellows 18 at a greater speed, but preferably the duct 25 is of such restricted capacity as to collapse the pneumatic 18 to give a diminuendo effect similarto, but faster than, that produced by exhausting through the duct 20. When atmosphere is readmitted through the duct 25. afast crescendo results.

.The pneumatic 18'may also be exhausted through a duct 27 of sufficiently large capacity to permit the pneumatic to be exhausted practically instantaneously to move the spring 11 very rapidly toward the right in the'drawing to produce a. distinct step of reduction in playing intensities. When atmosphere is re-admitted through the large capacityjduct 27, the bellows 18 is expanded practically instantaneously to produce a distinct step of increase in playing intensities.

' To provide for a plurality of distinct steps, means are provided for arresting the collapse of the pneumatic 1-8 at difi'erent; stages. Pivotedat 30 b0 the movableboard of the pneumatic 18 is a rod 31 arranged to slide endwise through a stationary eye-- bracket 32. This rod 31 is arranged to contact at its end lulder different circumstances,

with stop devices next described.

A pneumatic 35 arranged to be exhausted through a duct 36 is provided with a stop 37 arranged to be positioned in the path of the rod 31 and to arrest the movement of said rod when the pneumatic 18 has collapsed through, say two-thi'rds'of its movement', I

When neither of the stops 3? nor'42'isinterposed in the path of movement of the rod 31 in collapseof the pneumatic 1 8-, the latter is completely collapsed until the end of the rod 18- strikes a stationary stop surface 45.

Having been thus collapsed, if at'mosphere is admitted to the pneumatic 18, to'star-t-an expanding movement, the stop 42 may be interposed in the returning path of the head 46 on the rod 31 (the stop 42 being forked to straddle the shank of the rod 31). so as to arrest the expanding movement of the" rod 31 at the end of substantially; one-third thereof. Simila-rl in the further expanding. movement 0 the rod 31% the stop 37 (which is also forked). may be interposed in the path of thehead 46 to arrest its movement at the end of substantially the: secondthird thereof. If neither of the stops 37 or 42 be interposed in the returningv pathof the head 46, the pneumatic 18 is permitted its full expanding movement untilthe head 46 is arrested by a stop 48. v n

The pneumatic 1-8 may thus be-colla at any one of several-speeds and to different extents, to produce corresponding reductions in: playing intensities; and; likewise the pneumatic 18 may at any one-of a pluralityof speeds andthroughthree extents to produce increases in playing intensity. and increases in playing. intensity may be by way of diminuendo andcrescendo at difierent speeds or may be practically instantaneous distinct steps. All the described are produced in the illustrative apparatus by varying the effective leverage of the regulating spring upontheregilator bellows and thereby modifying the tion so asto produce a cherry in action of the regulator upon the y aive 8,; p

The various ducts 20,25,27, 368M141, may e open to atmosphere or a source of exhaust in any practicable manner as by means of primary, or primary and secondary, valves such as are used in connection with the usual tracker ducts leading to tone-sounding actions such as the playing pneumatic 2.

It is to be understood that this invention is not limited to the particular construction, organization and mode of o eration shown in thedrawings anddescribe in illustration: On the contrary, the invention may be variously embodied and the particular construction may be variously modified within the Scope 0 the sub-joined claims. It is not indispensable that all the features of the inventi'o'n be used conjointly since, in some instances, they may be used separately to advantage.

Claims. I

1. Ina musical instrument, the combination' of playing pneumatics; a source of power for operating the playing pneumat ics; aregulating, pneumatic having a valve between said source of power and the playing pneumatics; a regulator spring connected to the regulating pneumatic; means for varying the effective leverage of said spring upon said pneumatic; and pneumatic means to operate said varying means.

2. In a musical instrument, the combination. of playing pneumatics; a source of power for operating the playing pneumatics; aregulating pneumatic having a valve betweei' said source of power and said pla ing pneumatics'; a spring connected to said" regulating pneumatic; an expression pneumatic; and means for reducing the eflective action of the spring upon the regulating pneumatic by collapseof sai'd expression beflows;

3. Ina musical instrument, the combination of playing pneumatics'; a source of power for operating the playing'pneumatics': a regulator having a valve between sai'd source of power and the playing pneumatics; an expression pneumatic actingv upon the regulator for modifying the action thereof to produce changes in playing intensities; means for exhausting and expanding the expression pneumatic; and means for limiting both collapsing and expanding. movement of saidexpression pneumatic in a plurality ofste s.

41 n a musical instrument, the combinaof-playing pneumatics; a source of power for operating the playing pneumatics; a regulator having a valve between said. source of power and said playing, pneumatics; aregulator spring;and pneumatically actuated means for shifting the point of application of the force of said spring to the regulator, gradually to produce a crescendo.

5. In amusical instrument, the combinatiom of playing pneumatics; a source of power for operating the playing pneumatics; a regulator having a valve between said source of power and 'said playing pneumat ics; a regulator spring; and pneumatically actuated means to shift the point of application of the force of said spring to the regulator, abruptly to produce a distinct step of change in playing intensity.

6. In a musical instrument, the combination of playing neumatics; a source of power for operating the playing pneumatics; a regulator having a valve between said source of power and said playing pneumatics; a regulator spring; pneumatically actuated means to shift the point of application of the force of said spring to the pneumatic gradually at different speeds to produce crescendos at different speeds.

7. In a musical instrument, the combination of playing pneumatics; a source of power for operating the playing pneumatics; a regulator having a valve between said source of power and said playing pneumatics; a regulator spring; pneumatically actuated means to shift the [point of application of the force of said spring to the regulator; and means to determine difierent distances through which said point of application may be shifted.

8. In a musical instrument the combination of playing pneumatics; a source of power for operating the playing pneumat' ics; expression governing means interposed between the source of power and the playing neumatics including a spring acting upon a regulator pneumatic; means to vary the effective leverage of the spring; and pneumatic means to operate said varying means.

9. In a musical instrument the combination of playing pneumatics; a source of power for operating the playing pneumatics; expression governing means interposed between the source or" power and the playing pneumatics including a pneumatic having a pivoted movable board and a spring connected thereto; means whereby the spring vmay be connected to the movable board of the pneumatic at different distances from the pivot; and pneumatic means to change the point of connection of said spring to said movable board.

10. In a musical instrument the combination of playing pneumatics and a source of power for operating them, a regulating pneumatic having a valve to control the flow of air from the player pneumatics to the source of power, an expression pneumatic for varying playing intensities, and means operated by the expansion of said expression pneumatic to increase playing intensities and by the collapse of said expression pneumatic to reduce playing intensities.

In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

CHARLES F. STODDARD.

Witnesses:

LAURENCE A. JANNEY, I. E. EDGAR. 

